
Bristol Myers Squibb appoints Cristian Massacesi as chief medical officer and head of development
Ella Day | July 28, 2025 | Appointment | Research and Development | Bristol Myer Squibb, Corporate, Executive Leadership Team, Head of Development, chief medical officer, executive vice president
Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) has announced the appointment of Cristian Massacesi as executive vice president, chief medical officer, and head of development, effective 1 August 2025. Massacesi will lead the company’s global early- and late-stage product development efforts across all therapeutic areas and will join BMS’ executive leadership team.
Massacesi brings over two decades of global biopharma experience and a strong track record of delivering regulatory approvals. Most recently, he served as chief medical officer of AstraZeneca and Alexion and oncology chief development officer at AstraZeneca, where he led a global team of over 3,000 and advanced more than 150 clinical studies. He has also held senior roles at Pfizer and Novartis, contributing to major oncology and hematology programmes.
“I am on a mission to discover new medicines, unlocking innovative approaches to researching and treating challenging diseases so that one day, no patient will hear that all options have been exhausted. I am excited to join BMS in this shared purpose,” said Massacesi.
Massacesi succeeds Samit Hirawat who will step down from his role on 1 August and remain with BMS as an advisor until 1 November to support a smooth transition.
CEO of BMS, Christopher Boerner, praised Hirawat’s six years of leadership: “Samit has played a pivotal role in bringing innovative treatments across multiple disease areas to patients worldwide. We are deeply grateful for his contributions.”
Ella Day
28/7/25

This article featured in: August 2025 – The Pharmafile Brief
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